Argo sinks Pi at Globes

Beverly Hills, Jan. 14 (Reuters): Iran hostage drama Argo scored a sweet double victory at the Golden Globe awards yesterday, winning best movie drama ' the night's top prize ' and best director for Ben Affleck on a night that left front-runner Lincoln with just one trophy.

Musical Les Miserables won the contest for best comedy or musical, as well as acting awards for stars Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway.

Among the season's leading contenders, Life of Pi suffered one of the biggest rebuffs. It won only for its score, by Mychael Danna, though it had received the second-highest number of nominations, with 11. Directed by Ang Lee, Pi stars Suraj Patel, Irrfan Khan and Tabu. But elsewhere, it was a night of surprises at Hollywood's second biggest awards show after the Oscars in February.

Actress Jodie Foster publicly acknowledged for the first time that she is gay, and former President Bill Clinton appeared at the glitzy ceremony. Yet the big story was the defeat of Steven Spielberg's drama about President Abraham Lincoln's battle to end slavery ' which went into yesterday's ceremony with a leading seven nominations ' and the triumph of Affleck in the director's race. Affleck was overlooked in the directing category when Oscar nominations were announced last Thursday, although Argo was short-listed for best film at the Oscar ceremony to be held on February 24.

Argo combines the true story of the rescue of US diplomats from Tehran after the Islamic Revolution in 1979 under the guise of making a movie, with a satire on Hollywood. Argo producer George Clooney told reporters backstage yesterday that he was disappointed at Affleck's personal snub by the Academy Awards voters. "I think he did a phenomenal job with the film. I felt that he should have been nominated, but you can't figure out what goes on in the Academy and he's still nominated for best picture... I''s disappointing, but we're not out of the water just yet," Clooney said.

British actor Daniel Day-Lewis, who plays Abraham Lincoln, got the only Golden Globe win for Lincoln, which has a leading 12 Oscar nominations. Instead, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which organises the Golden Globes, showed their admiration for Quentin Tarantino's slavery-era Western Django Unchained. It won two awards ' for Tarantino's screenplay, and Christoph Waltz's supporting actor turn as a dentist turned bounty hunter. "Wow! ... This is a damn surprise, and I am happy to be surprised," Tarantino said, accepting his screenplay award.

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